Israeli troops kill Palestinian teenager in the West Bank

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian youth on Wednesday in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian officials and the Israeli military said.

The dead teenager was named as Youssef Shawamra. His family said he was 16.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said that three Palestinian suspects were seen tampering with a security fence near the West Bank city of Hebron, and did not heed the soldiers' call on them to stop and move back.

"The soldiers began full arrest procedure. After all means were exhausted, the soldiers shot toward the main suspect, at his lower body and a hit was identified. An Israeli medical team took him to an Israeli hospital where he died of his wounds," the military spokeswoman said.

No further details were available.

Palestinian officials say Israeli forces have killed 57 Palestinians and injured almost 897 others since the resumption of U.S.-brokered peace talks last July. They have accused Israel of using heavy handed methods to stir up tensions.

Last month, Amnesty International published a report which said Israeli forces were using excessive violence in the West Bank, killing dozens of Palestinians over the past three years in what the rights group said might constitute a war crime.